MLB Draft 2014: Full Table of Team-by-Team Day 1 Results and Grades

On Thursday each Major League Baseball franchise looked to the future, as the most promising young prospects were selected over the first two rounds of the draft.

A bevy of talented pitchers and dynamic sluggers were available over the early rounds of the draft. Some teams opted to look well into the future, selecting developmental prospects with plenty of upside. Others looked for more of an immediate impact, picking up MLB-ready players.

There were a few surprising picks on Day 1 of the draft; however, given the promise of the selected athletes, every franchise improved on Thursday.

Let's take a look at each team's selections and provide the corresponding grades while highlighting a few of the day's most intriguing picks.

Round 1 Picks and Grades

2014 MLB Draft: Round 1 Results and Grades

Pick

Team

Player

Position

Grade

1

Houston Astros

Brady Aiken

LHP

A

2

Miami Marlins

Tyler Kolek

RHP

A

3

Chicago White Sox

Carlos Rodon

LHP

A

4

Chicago Cubs

Kyle Schwarber

C/OF

B-

5

Minnesota Twins

Nick Gordon

SS

A

6

Seattle Mariners

Alex Jackson

OF

A

7

Philadelphia Phillies

Aaron Nola

RHP

A

8

Colorado Rockies

Kyle Freeland

LHP

A

9

Toronto Blue Jays

Jeff Hoffman

RHP

A-

10

New York Mets

Michael Conforto

OF

A

11

Toronto Blue Jays

Max Pentecost

C

A-

12

Milwaukee Brewers

Kodi Medeiros

LHP

A

13

San Diego Padres

Trea Turner

SS

A

14

San Francisco Giants

Tyler Beede

RHP

A

15

Los Angeles Angels

Sean Newcomb

LHP

A

16

Arizona Diamondbacks

Touki Toussaint

RHP

A

17

Kansas City Royals

Brandon Finnegan

LHP

B+

18

Washington Nationals

Erick Fedde

RHP

B-

19

Cincinnati Reds

Nick Howard

3B/RHP

A

20

Tampa Bay Rays

Casey Gillaspie

1B

A

21

Cleveland Indians

Bradley Zimmer

OF

A-

22

Los Angeles Dodgers

Grant Holmes

RHP

A

23

Detroit Tigers

Derek Hill

OF

A

24

Pittsburgh Pirates

Cole Tucker

SS

A

25

Oakland Athletics

Matt Chapman

3B/RHP

A-

26

Boston Red Sox

Michael Chavis

IF

A

27

St. Louis Cardinals

Luke Weaver

RHP

A-

Sean O'Donnell's Grades

1. Houston Astros: Brady Aiken, LHP

The 17-year-old Aiken was the first player off the board this year. The southpaw has a polished low-90s fastball and plus curveball, as well as a developing arsenal. His control is impeccable for his age, and he shouldn't need much development further down the line.

Adding Aiken gives the Astros an even more impressive farm system.

According to CBSSports.com, he ended a rather long trend for high school pitchers:

4. Chicago Cubs: Kyle Schwarber, C

Schwarber may be considered a bit of a reach at the No. 4 pick, which makes his selection here a bit of a surprise. He doesn't project to stay behind the plate in the big leagues and could be expected to move to the outfield.

The redeeming virtue of his early selection is his bat. He may not have overwhelming power, but he is a consistent hitter with enough pop to make a difference in the majors.

Jim Bowden of ESPN thinks Schwarber has tremendous upside:

Comp. A Picks and Grades

2014 MLB Draft: Comp. Round A Results and Grades

Pick

Team

Player

Position

Grade

28

Kansas City Royals

Foster Griffin

LHP

A

29

Cincinnati Reds

Alex Blandino

3B

A-

30

Texas Rangers

Luis Ortiz

RHP

A-

31

Cleveland Indians

Justus Sheffield

LHP

B+

32

Atlanta Braves

Braxton Davidson

1B/OF

A-

33

Boston Red Sox

Michael Kopech

RHP

A-

34

St. Louis Cardinals

Jack Flaherty

RHP

B+

Sean O'Donnell's Grades

28. Kansas City Royals: Foster Griffin, LHP

The Royals continued to add pitching to their farm system with the selection of Griffin here. He has plenty of upside with a plus fastball and a nice, developing changeup. With his good command and control, developing his arsenal could make the 6'5" southpaw a steal here.

Here's a look at what Griffin brings to Kansas City:

Competitive Balance A Picks and Grades

2014 MLB Draft: Competitive Balance A Results and Grades

Pick

Team

Player

Position

Grade

35

Colorado Rockies

Forrest Wall

SS

B+

36

Miami Marlins

Blake Anderson

C

B-

37

Houston Astros

Derek Fisher

OF

A

38

Cleveland Indians

Mike Papi

OF

A-

39

Pittsburgh Pirates

Connor Joe

OF/C

B-

40

Kansas City Royals

Chase Vallot

C

A

41

Milwaukee Brewers

Jacob Gatewood

SS

A

Sean O'Donnell's Grades

41. Milwaukee Brewers: Jacob Gatewood, SS

Gatewood has the potential to be a stud down the road. His bat speed is off the charts, and his raw power is noticeable. He does need to develop patience, as he's known to be a little too aggressive at the plate. Defensively, he'll probably move to third base down the line, as he'll eventually outgrow the shortstop position. Nevertheless, he's athletic enough to handle multiple positions in the infield.

The Astros continued their stellar draft by selecting Reed to go along with Aiken and Derek Fisher. Reed will absolutely stick at first base due to his limited speed and athleticism. However, he has some great power as a hitter, and if he can improve his bat speed, he could turn into a major slugger for Houston.

Astros beat writer Brian McTaggart tweeted a message from Reed to the franchise:

Competitive Balance B Picks and Grades

2014 MLB Draft: Competitive Balance B Results and Grades

Pick

Team

Player

Position

Grade

69

Arizona Diamondbacks

Marcus Wilson

OF

A

70

Arizona Diamondbacks

Isan Diaz

SS

B+

71

St. Louis Cardinals

Andrew Morales

RHP

C+

72

Tampa Bay Rays

Brent Honeywell

RHP

B-

73

Pittsburgh Pirates

Trey Supak

RHP

A

74

Seattle Mariners

Gareth Morgan

OF

B+

Sean O'Donnell's Grades

69. Arizona Diamondbacks: Marcus Wilson, OF

Wilson is the epitome of a big-time project for Arizona's farm system. He has plenty of useful tools at his disposal, which gives him lots of upside; however, it will be quite some time before he can successfully harness his raw power to become consistent in the majors.